How full a Sydney childcare centre is, and for how long, decides its value.
A valuer measures occupancy against the places a centre is approved for, then wages, the lease and the service approval, which in New South Wales needs the regulator's consent to change hands.
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For a childcare centre in Sydney, value comes from the places the centre is approved to offer and how many of them are filled. Occupancy is the first figure a valuer tests, then wages, the main cost, and the lease, which fixes how long the centre can trade from its site. In New South Wales the service approval can be transferred from one approved provider to another, but both must notify the NSW Early Learning Commission at least 60 days before the intended transfer date, and the transfer needs the regulator's consent.
Occupancy against approved places is where the value of a centre starts.
A valuer measures occupancy against the places the centre is approved for, so the first question is how many are filled, on which days and in which rooms. The record over several years counts for more than one strong term. So do the waiting list, the daily fee and any new centres opening nearby.
In New South Wales a service approval reaches a buyer only with the regulator's consent.
In NSW, long day care centres, preschools and outside school hours care come under the Children (Education and Care Services) National Law (NSW). An operator first obtains a provider approval, then a service approval for each service it runs. The regulator is the NSW Early Learning Commission.
A service approval can be transferred from one approved provider to another. Both providers must notify the NSW Early Learning Commission at least 60 days before the intended transfer date, and its policy says a transfer made without consent is void. The same policy says consent is taken to be given where the regulator has had a valid notice and does not say it will intervene. So the buyer has to be an approved provider, and the valuation assumes the approval will reach them.
Wages and the lease decide how much of the fee income is kept.
Staff are the main cost. A valuer checks whether the wage bill reflects a full, settled team, whether the owner is filling a role unpaid, and how much goes on agency staff. The lease is read for the years left, how the rent rises, and what it says about passing the lease to a buyer. A short lease caps the value however full the rooms are.
The accounts are restated for an owner who pays for every role.
Many centres are run by owners who also direct, teach or keep the books. A valuer shows what the centre would earn if each of those jobs were paid for at a market wage, and removes income and costs that will not repeat.
- ·A market wage for an owner working as director or educator
- ·A market rent where the owner also owns the building
- ·One-off grants, set-up costs and large repairs
- ·Fees and charges between the centre and related entities
A settled centre and a new centre are valued by different methods.
A centre with steady occupancy is valued by capitalising its maintainable earnings, at a rate that reflects the lease, the competition and the stability of the staff. A new centre still filling its rooms suits a discounted cash flow, which follows occupancy as it builds and tests the forecast against the centre's actual enrolments so far.
Childcare centres: questions we are asked.
Who regulates childcare centres in NSW?
The NSW Early Learning Commission. It was established on 1 December 2025 as the independent regulator for early learning in the state. Before that date the regulator was the NSW ECEC Regulatory Authority within the NSW Department of Education. A valuer asks for a centre's approvals and regulator correspondence, whichever body issued them.
Can the 60 days of notice be shortened, and who else has to be told?
Only in exceptional circumstances, according to the Service Transfers Policy of the NSW Early Learning Commission. The same policy says parents must be told in writing at least seven days before the transfer. A valuer takes the timetable into account, because the date the approval can move affects when a sale can complete.
Can a centre be valued before the regulator has consented to the transfer?
Yes. A valuation is struck at a date and states its assumptions, and one of them is usually that the service approval will transfer to the buyer. If consent is refused or delayed, that assumption fails and the figure no longer holds. Whether consent is likely is a question for the regulator and your lawyer, not for a valuer.
Is the building included when a Sydney childcare centre is valued?
Not in the business value. Where the operator owns the premises, a property valuer in New South Wales values the land and buildings, and the business is valued separately as a tenant paying a market rent. Keeping the two apart stops the same profit being counted twice, and lets a buyer take the business alone or with the property.
Where the rules on this page come from
This page describes the rules in general terms. It is not legal, tax or duty advice: your lawyer or accountant advises on how a rule applies to you.
- ·Service approval: setting up a new service, NSW Early Learning Commission
- ·Our role, NSW Early Learning Commission
- ·NSW Early Learning Commission, NSW Government
- ·Service Transfers Policy, version 1.1, 21 July 2026, NSW Early Learning Commission
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Page last reviewed on 15 November 2026. Business Valuations Sydney, 32 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000.